West Chester Savings Bank merges with two other banks

Jul 09, 2013

Three area banks, West Chester Savings Bank of Washington, Freedom Security Bank of Kalona and Coralville, and Central State Bank of Muscatine, combined under a single charter on Tuesday, July 9. The result is an institution with eight area locations and nearly $440 million in assets, placing it in the top 10 percent in terms of size among Iowa’s 320 commercial banks.The merger represents a joining of forces of the three Iowa banks owned by Muscatine-based Central Bancshares, Inc. Because no purchase or sale is involved, and because all three currently use the same company-owned data processing system, the transaction is expected to be extraordinarily smooth.“No action is required on the part of our customers,” said Steve Olson, President and CEO of West Chester Savings Bank. “Account numbers will not change, and they can continue using their existing debit cards, checks and other materials. Online and mobile banking usernames and passwords will remain the same as well.“We will be reissuing credit cards, but that won’t occur until late August,” Olson said. “We’ll be in touch with our cardholders before that takes place.” For the time being, the bank in Washington will continue to operate under the West Chester Savings Bank name, and the banks in Kalona and Coralville will operate under the Freedom Security Bank name. There are no immediate plans for changing products and services. Additional merger-related information, including a “Frequently-Asked Questions” document, was mailed to customers late last week. “Over the course of the summer, we’ll be making some behind-the-scenes adjustments that will enable our customers to transact business at any of our eight locations in Washington, Kalona, Coralville, Wilton and Muscatine,” Olson noted. “We hope to have this finished by September 1, and we’ll be back in touch with everyone when this has been completed.”